bodeman



(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet l.

H. W. BODEMAN FENDER FOR STREET CARS.

,No. 599,281. Patented Feb. 15,1898.

Witnesses: Inventor- (No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

H. W. BODEMAN.

FENDER FOR STREET CARS.

No. 599,281. Patented Feb. 15,1898.

(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 3. 7

H. W. BODEMAN.

FENDER FOR STREET GAR$.

No. 599,281. Patented Feb. 15,1898.

Srans AENT rrr c HENRY W. BODEMAN, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA,ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO M. H. LOGAN, OF SAME PLACE.

FENDER FOR STREET-CARS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 599,281, dated February15, 1898. Application filed April 21, 1897. Serial No. 633,153 (Nomodel.)

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY W. BODEMAN, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of San Francisco,and State of California, have inventedanew and useful SafetyDevice; and I do hereby declare that the followingis a full, clear, and exact description of said invention, such as willenable others skilled in the art to which it most nearly appertains tomake, use, and practice the same.

My invention relates to that class of safety devices known as fenders,which are placed in front of street-cars or tramways for the purpose ofremoving any obstructions which may lie in the path of a running car orto protect human beings from injury by cars not provided with propersafety-guards.

The object of my invention is to produce a device which is simple inconstruction, effective in operation, and convenient in manipulation, soarranged and constructed that any object which may be in the path of thecar can be removed without the slightest injury and kept safely out ofthe way until the car is fully under the control of the motorman orcomes to a standstill.

To these ends my invention consistsviz., first, to construct fenders, inthe shape of a receiving basket or scoop fastened in front of the car,adapted to rotate in either direction and provided with rear guard,fastened preferably beneath the car, so that when an obstruct-ion comesin contact with any part of the scoop a rotary movement will departtherefrom and cause its upper edge to drop downward, while the rearguard likewise drops on the track and pushes the object into the scoopas the car goes along; secondly, to provide appliances and improvementsin various parts of the device whereby both the scoop and the rear guardcan be automatically controlled and operated, which will be hereinafterfully described and claimed.

As a full and complete understanding of my invention can be'had tobetter advantage by a detailed description thereof, I will now proceedto describe the preferred embodiment of the invention, reference beinghad to the accompanying drawings, which form part of the specification,in which- Figure 1 is a front elevation, broken away, of an ordinarystreet-car, showing the scoop as it appears when the same is ready foroperation. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of Fig. 1, showing also a sideelevation of the rear guard and the manner by which both the scoop andthe rear guard are connected to the car. Fig. 3 is a front portion ofthe rear guard, broken away, showing the manner in which it is securedto the car. Fig. 4 is a similar illustration of Fig. 2, but showingthescoop and rear guard as-they appear before removing an object,illustrating also the forward movement of thescoop. Fig. 5 is a similarillustration, but showing the scoop moved out of the way and secured tothe front end of the car. Fig. 6 shows my device in position as itappears after the object has been removed and safely carried out of theway, illustrating also the backward movement of the scoop.

Similar letters of reference denote corresponding parts throughout thevarious figures of the drawings.

A represents the framework of the scoop, which is semicircular inshapeand supported beyond its axis by means of bracket B, pivoted, as atC, to the side bar D, and at E is a bolt suitably secured to bracket F,by which the side bar D is pivotally held in position at the forward endof the car for the purpose of providing room for the rotary movement ofthe scoop and to remove the device out of the way, if desired, as shownparticularly in Fig. 5. The rear end of bar D extends beneath the bottomof the car and is removably secured thereto by means of bolt G, or othermeans may be used, if desired. The bracket F is preferably secured orotherwise bolted to the bottom of the car and has at its forward end twodownward prongs f, between which block H is movably secured by means ofpin J. Suitably secured to said block is a forward-projecting rod h,which extends into a corresponding notch a, cut angularly upon the sideof the scoop for the purpose of keeping the latter in position when notin operation. This rod is so constructed as to press inwardly againstthe side of the scoop. Near the circumference of the outer side of the Iscoop is the rear guard, which is connected, preferably, to the bottomof the car by means of connecting-rod L, pivoted, as at M, to bracket N,which is suitably bolted to the car.

P is the framework of the rear guard, and Q a roller suitably secured toits lower edge and adapted to roll upon the track when the rear guard isin operation.

Movably secured to the pin J and against rod 71. is a hook I for thepurpose of keeping the rear guard above the track when not in operation,and when released the rear guard is forced downward by means of springR, secured between the bottom of the car and the connecting-rod L. Thisspring is provided with guide 0, which is bolted to the bottom of thecar and passes through a hole bored'in bar Zof the connecting-rod L. Thehook just described is provided with a rectangular bar K, which extends,preferably, beneath the car and connected at its forward end about themiddle of the foot-power 2', so that the hook can be released by footindependently of the scoop, if desired, causing thereby the rear guardto drop downward.

O is a portion of an ordinary car, and S a hook secured to the forwardend of the car for the purpose of holding the scoop when the same hasbeen removed out of the way, as particularly shown in Fig. 5.

Both the edges of the frame of the scoop and its rear guard are providedwith rubber or other elastic material for the purpose of lessening theshock when the same strikes an object which may happen to be in the way,and the interior portion is preferably provided with suitable netting,as plainly shown in Figs. 1 and 3.

So that a more comprehensible understanding of the value of my inventioncan be had I shall give a brief resume of its working when the same isin operation. The fender and its rear guard are placed and held in theirrespective positions by means of hook I and projecting rod h. Thus thedevice is ready for operation, and while the car moves forward if anobject comes in contact with the scoop the same will cause it to rotateand force the rod h to slide out of notch a by means of the inclinedplanes formed upon the side of the notch, thus forcing the hook I torock outwardly, releasing thereby the rear guard, which drops upon thetrack. It will be readily seen that if an object strikes the scoop atits upper edge the same will naturally drop backward, carrying theobject into its netting, and when struck at its lower edge the upperedge, which extends forward of its axis, will drop forward upon thetrack, While the forward movements of the rear guard push the same intothe scoop, where it is safely kept until released. Then the rear guardis moved back to its normal position. Likewise the scoop is returned toits former position. Thus the device is ready for a similar operation.

Believing that I have produced a valuable improvement in safety devicesfor street-cars and having described the same, what I claim as new, anddesire to secure by United States Letters Patent, is-

1. In an article of the class described the combination of a rear guardwith a forward eccentrically-pivoted revolving basket, said basket beingcapable of motion in either direction past said guard according as it isstruck above or below its pivotal point for the purpose set forth.

2. In an article of the class described the combination of a forwardapproximately semi circular and eccentrically-pivoted revolving basket,with a rear guard brought into action by the motion of said basket forthe purpose set forth.

3. A car-fender consisting of a rear guard and a forwardeccentrically-pivoted basket, the outer edges of said guard and saidbasket being adapted to advance toward each other and overlap for thepurpose set forth.

4. A car-fender provided with a forward eccentrically-pivoted basket, incombination with a rear guard, a portion of the periphery of said basketbeing adapted, during its partial revolution, to come in contact withthe road-bed, said rear guard being approximately tangent to the circleof revolution of said portion for the purpose set forth.

5. Acar-fender provided with a rear guard, a forwardeccentrically-pivoted revolving basket having engagement with saidguard, said basket being adapted to revolve entirely over and under anyobstructing body and draw it toward said pivotal point thereby elevatingit from the road-bed, the motion of said basket being further directedto cause the lowering of said guard for the purpose set forth.

6. A car-fender provided with an eccentrically pivoted revolving basket,the major radius of said basket being greater than the distance betweenthe road-bed and said pivotal point, while its minor radius is less thansaid distance, said basket being partially revolved by contact with saidbed for the purpose set forth.

In testimony whereof have hereunto set my hand this 8th day of January,A. D. 1897.

HENRY IV. BODEMAN.

In presence of- MAY MORGAN, I. J. TRUMAN, Jr.

ICC

